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Photo Courtesy of Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck.

Top 10 Interesting Facts about Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck

Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck was a popular portrait painter during the Golden Age era from Haarlem, Dutch Republic. The scarcity of his materials relating to his life made it difficult to trace his exact date of birth.

Although is it believed that he was born around 1597, there is some recent archival research revealing that he might have been born a decade later.

He was taught how to paint portraits by his father who was named Cornelis Engelsz who also lived in Haarlem. Most of the time from his early childhood, Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck remained isolated from the city鈥檚 art circles.

He began to pursue his career in 1632 after joining the Guild of Saint Luke. Although he had a very successful career as a painter, he however never married. He lived with his parents for most of the time until he bought a house in 1656 where he lived with his brother and sister.

Below are the top ten interesting facts about Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck

1. Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck was Inspired by Frans Hals

Photo authored by Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck.

Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck’s career was greatly influenced by Frans Hals who inspired him in a very big way. Frans Hal’s influence on Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck is particularly seen in the informal poses and the sitter’s natural expressions which are seen in the present portraits. 

Although he might have gotten the poses for Frans it is shown that he adapted them in a clear personal manner which gave his portraits a different impact.

In most of his portraits, the sitter is mostly positioned on the left to allow him to make the background a significant element.

2. Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck was a Successful Portraitist in Haarlem

Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck became one of the wealthy people in Haarlem through his career in painting. He became very successful as a result of painting group portraits for several civic organizations.

Although he grew up as a committed catholic, he also obtained commissions from the Calvinists as well as the catholic patrons to where he belonged.

In his entire career in portraits, only one of his portraits for which the price is known. The portrait belonged to the Catholic priest known as Augustijn Alsthenius Bloemert and he received a payment of 60 guilders.

3. He is known for his Exactness in Painting Details

The Regentesses of the St. Elisabeth’s Hospital in Haarlem. Photo by Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck. Wikimedia Commons

Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck became very popular in Haarlem specifically due to the exactness of his painting details. His exactness was particularly revealed during his painting of the lace and jewelry which made it popular with female sitters.

His spectacular work made him win the lucrative commission for the group portraits in 1642. The award he won was from the Heilige Geesthuis which was among the wealthiest institution in Haarlem during that period.

4. Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck Learnt Painting from His Father

Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck learned the art of painting from his father, Cornelis Engelsz who was a popular painter during the Golden Age in Haarlem.

When he received the painting training he was always enclosed in his home and did not have the opportunity to mingle with the city’s art circles. After receiving significant training from his father he later joined the Guild of Saint Luke where he pursued his career as a portraitist.

5. Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck Never Married

Although Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck was very popular and had a very successful career during the Golden Age he however never married. He spent most of his time in his parent house from his birth until he was old enough.

After he began his career in portraits and became very popular in the area due to his exactness in detail, he became very wealthy. He later managed to buy a house and left his parent’s house and there he lived with his brother and sister.

6. There are Controversies Concerning his Birth

There are several controversies concerning the birth of Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck and not much is known about it. Some of the researchers suggest that he was born around 1597 while other suggests that he was born between 1606 and 1609.

The controversies result due to a lack of material to prove the specific year when he was born. Theodorus Schrevelius is the only writer to mention him and he referred to him as Gerard Sprong which brings in more confusion regarding his biography.

7. Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck was Responsible for 鈥淕irl in a Blue Dress鈥�

鈥淕irl in a Blue Dress鈥� is a very popular portrait that was created by Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck. The portrait shows an adorable child who has been dressed in her Sunday best.

The portrait is also called the Portrait of a Girl Dressed in Blue. The portrait is an oil painting that was acquired by a museum as a gift from the Vereniging Rembrandt in 1928.

8. About 100 Painting by Verspronck are Known

Photo by Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck.

Of all his works in painting, only about 100 paintings are known. The Girl Dressed in Blue is the most popular of all his portraits since it appeared in the twenty-five guilder banknote in 1945.

The Catholic priest Augustijn Alsthenius Bloemert is the only portrait whose price is known.

9. Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck was a Pupil of Frans Hals

Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck was not only inspired by Frans Hals in his painting career but he was also his teacher.

Although Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck obtained a lot of expressions and informal poses from his teacher, they had different ways of positioning their figures. His figures were mostly positioned on the left while Frans Hal’s figures were positioned in the middle.

10. He has his Portraits in Rijksmuseum Amsterdam

Dutch Golden Age paintings. Photo authored by Sailko.

Rijksmuseum is a national museum located in the Netherlands which is entirely dedicated to the Dutch arts and history.

The museum hosts the Portraits of Maria Strijp which is one of the works of Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck. Several portraits are located in other museums including the Frans Hals Museum.

Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck is a prominent portraitist who has been recognized in his country for his great works. He became very popular following his exactness in detail where he did a wonderful job in the painting of lace and jewelry.

He also remained unmarried until his death and lived most of his life in his parents’ house.